THE NIGHT BEFORE:
• Post cardstock signs at nearby major intersections.
• Price your items. Remember: A good yard sale has prices that are cheap enough to get buyers reaching for their wallets, not thinking "You’re only offering 50% off the list price of a 5-year-old IKEA table?!"
• Fill and strap on your über-stylish fanny-pack-cum-change-float (safer than a lockbox)
• Find a couple heavy-duty electrical extension cords and set them aside
• Set your alarm clock!
THE DAY OF:
6 AM:
• Wake up, get caffeinated, eat breakfast!
7 AM:
• Start setting up your tables and wares, and have a friend shoo away Early Birds. (Or, let 'em shop if they're willing to pay full price: why discount so early in the day?) Your friend should also ensure they don't mess up your newly arranged product displays!
• If you don't have a rolling clothes rack, string a clothesline across your property and hang clothing from it.
• Group blenders, power tools and other electrical devices together on one table and have an extension cord accessible nearby so shoppers can try before they buy.
8 AM:
• Sale starts!
11AM:
• Mark down all remaining items by 50%.
12PM:
• Offer "Buy Two, Get One Free" or other incentives to move the last of your product. Remember: Whatever doesn’t move now will be cluttering your closets tonight, or have to be packed up and carted off to Goodwill.
1PM:
• Cut your losses and end your sale: You don't want to waste the rest of the day babysitting leftovers!
• Either pack up your leftovers and cart them off to Goodwill or another charity, or
• Consolidate leftovers onto one table and put up a big FREE sign.
Yard sale survival kit
• Water
• Coffee!
• Sunscreen, sunglasses or hat
• China marker, or price stickers and permanent marker
• Change float fanny pack
• Lawn chair
• Good friends to gossip with!
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